Henderson to celebrate its heritage with festival

This year's Henderson Heritage Parade & Festival will honor the city's 1953 incorporation with a theme of "Magnesium to Magnificent." But those all-American industrial roots - Henderson originally was a factory town for workers at Basic Magnesium, in support of the war effort during World War II - will be reflected this year with a worldly flavor.

"There will be an international flair to it," said Nicole Johnson, communications specialist for the city's Department of Cultural Arts & Tourism. "Henderson is kind of a melting pot of cultures. We've got a lot of entertainment designed around that."

That would include the event's first Children's Parade of Nations, in which children will march around the Henderson Events Plaza, in the city's downtown area, to "It's a Small World (After All)."

"We just want them to sign up and come and have a lovely little parade," said Dona Brown of the International Food and Folk Life Association. "We'll announce them and the country they're representing, and just let them come and be the show. It should be quite a show. It should be really, really cute." (To sign up, go to www.IFFALV.org.)

The festival also will have plenty of internationally themed entertainment such as Polynesian dance, Japanese dance, Thai cultural arts, Italian bocce ball, Chinese jump rope, American Indian flutes, Bulgarian and Mexican entertainment and more, and a variety of foods from about 15 vendors.

"A lot of it's going to be centered around the entertainment and the food," Johnson said.

The day actually will begin with a food-related event, the Mayor & Council Breakfast from 8 to 9 a.m. at the Henderson Events Plaza, where Mayor Andy Hafen and members of the City Council will serve breakfast to residents.

The parade begins at 10 a.m. and will follow Water Street from Ocean Avenue to Victory Road. Johnson said last week there were about 70 entries so far, including two or three bands, cheer squads and "definitely a lot of youth groups."

A classical car show, featuring primarily hot rods and muscle cars, will run from noon to 6 p.m. in the Water Street district. The festival will continue to about 7 p.m., Johnson said.

Also new this year is the Water Street Historic Walking Tour, being launched in conjunction with the festival. This first phase of the tour is about a mile long and has eight stops reflecting the city's past, many of them with murals or photographs. Among them are the City Hall Plaza, where viewers can see an early view of Water Street, named for the pipeline used to pump water to the Basic Magnesium plant; the corner of Army and Market streets, where they'll see a photo of a Memphis Belle crewman talking to a BMI worker; and the east side of Water Street, where they can see a photo of the original city hall above Bryne's grocery store.

Like the parade and festival, the walking tour is free. (After the festival, free maps will be available between 7:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. weekdays at the Henderson Convention Center, and online at www.WaterStreetDistrict.com and www.HendersonLive.com.)

Contact reporter Heidi Knapp Rinella at hrinella@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0474.